


What Happened to the Boy That I Used to Know?

by FloofyTMCCWritez



Series: Sleepy Bois Inc [2]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Author is a Toby Smith | Tubbo Apologist, Author is a Wilbur Soot Apologist, Bees, Caring Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Emotional Hurt No Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, Ghostbur is adorable, Hurt No Comfort, I, Insanity, Mental Breakdown, Mental Instability, Philza? More like gonza, Post-Manberg-Pogtopia War on Dream Team SMP (Video Blogging RPF), Pre Disc Saga, Pre-Canon, Protective Older Sibling Wilbur Soot, Sleepy Bois Inc as Family, Though Techno isn’t official he’s just there and helping Wilbur out, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, Time Travelling Karl Jacobs, Toby Smith | Tubbo and Wilbur Soot and Technoblade and TommyInnit are Siblings, TommyInnit Has PTSD (Video Blogging RPF), Uhm, Wilbur Soot Needs a Hug, Wilbur Soot and Technoblade and TommyInnit are Siblings, Wilbur Soot is Floris | Fundy's Parent, Wilbur Soot-centric, at canon ish, idk he just does change my mind, idk i suck at tagging dsmp, like as a child tho, the egg, tubbo has BEES, uh, uhh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-16 08:46:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29573391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FloofyTMCCWritez/pseuds/FloofyTMCCWritez
Summary: “Phil! Where have you been!” He turned, eyes bright with a hint of sadness.He dropped his sword on the grass, eyes widened, and he brought his hands up to muffle a sob.“W-Wilbur? Is… Is this a dream?”Wilbur shook his head, running into his father’s arms. “Where have you been! Techno and I have had to look after Tommy and Tubbo, and you’ve been off on that adventure since I was ten!”Phil froze.“Wilbur… I’ve been back for months now…” he pushed him away, grabbing his sword off the ground. The sword rippled with enchantments Wilbur was nervous to find out what they did, and he backed away.The multi-colored sweater-donning man appeared again. He pushed Phil’s arm down.“Relax. Look at his clothes. He’s from the past.”Phil did so, throwing his blade onto the ground. He put his face in his hand, sighing.“I thought…”“I know. I guess it’s just not that arc yet, Phil.”
Relationships: Toby Smith | Tubbo & Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit, Wilbur Soot & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit, Wilbur soot/Sally the fish
Series: Sleepy Bois Inc [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2163699
Comments: 7
Kudos: 133





	1. This Place Has Too Many Colors

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve had this idea in my head since yesterday and have been writing it in between classes and after school. I’ll finish the next chapter... soon. Actually for real since i like this idea.

Wilbur Soot chuckled with Tommy over a dumb joke he made, enjoying their time. Phil wasn’t back, so he’d been left to care for Tubbo and Tommy, with the help of Techno. He wasn’t their brother, but he was basically one.

“Hey, I got some food!” Techno exclaimed, holding up the bag with potatoes and beef. He threw them in the furnace, letting his hands warm up as he felt the warm air without his gloves.

The snow was slowly getting heavier. Technoblade had bought lots of food that could be stored or salted, such as meat to turn into jerky, and canned stew.

“Ooo, what are we having for dinner?” Tubbo asked. Techno smiled.

“It’s a surprise.”

A chorus of whines came from the living, and Technoblade sighed.

Absolute children.

Wilbur playfully shoved Tommy back using his nose, rolling his eyes.

“No, Tommy, we cannot eat Tubbo’s bees. I’m pretty sure he’d order them to attack you or something.”

Tubbo hummed in response, glaring at Tommy for the suggestion of such a preposterous idea. 

Techno smiled fondly at them.

He may not be related or adopted by Phil, but they were certainly his family.

* * *

“Tommy, I’ll say it again. We are not killing Tubbo’s bees! You like honey in your oatmeal, and when you're sick, right? It comes from Tubbo’s bees!”

“Fiiiineeeee.”

Wilbur decided his brother was extremely irresponsible at that moment.

He coughed into his elbow, feeling an itch in the back of his throat. 

Then, he kept coughing. 

Excusing himself to the bathroom, he threw up into the toilet. He was fine literally two minutes ago, why now?

He wiped his mouth off, rinsing and brushing his teeth.

Yuck.

And he was going to see Sally today, he didn’t want to get her sick. 

Double yuck.

He exited, brushing off Techno and Tommy’s worries.

He decided to head out for a walk, hoping the fresh air would do something to help him.

He was doing pretty fine, the chilly air in his lungs.

Then he needed to lean against a wall and try to even put his breaths. 

A man in a multi-colored sweater passed him, but took a moment to stare right at him before scribbling something in a book with a similar pattern. 

He coughed up some blood and black goo, gagging and running into a nearby alleyway to throw up.

Wilbur Soot collapsed there, laying near his own sick, the scent thick. Perhaps that was why no one came near him.

He awoke in a grassy field, seeing… 

Phil?

He pushed himself up, sprinting towards him.

“Phil! Where have you been!” He turned, eyes bright with a hint of sadness.

He dropped his sword on the grass, eyes widened, and he brought his hands up to muffle a sob.

“W-Wilbur? Is… Is this a dream?”

Wilbur shook his head, running into his father’s arms. “Where have you been! Techno and I have had to look after Tommy and Tubbo, and you’ve been off on that adventure since I was ten!”

Phil froze.

“Wilbur… I’ve been back for months now…” he pushed him away, grabbing his sword off the ground. The sword rippled with enchantments Wilbur was nervous to find out what they did, and he backed away.

The multi-colored sweater-donning man appeared again. He pushed Phil’s arm down.

“Relax. Look at his clothes. He’s from the past.”

Phil did so, throwing his blade onto the ground. He put his face in his hand, sighing.

“I thought…”

“I know. I guess it’s just not that arc yet, Phil.”

“I know you. You were there, with that book! And you- you were writing stuff down in it!”

He froze for a second, before staring at Wilbur.

“It was probably my past self.”

Wilbur sighed. Was he really in the future? Maybe he could write a song about this…

Too many colors… Have you gone insane? 

…

Have I?

“I’m… Going to send Tommy a message, and we’ll all meet up at Church Prime.”

Wilbur nodded, frowning.

He tested out some melodies for the song by humming, moving his fingers along an invisible and intangible guitar. 

Phil glanced at him, teary-eyed for some odd reason. He glanced back at the communicator Wilbur had used so many times to try and get him to come back.

He heard a ding from it and assumed Tommy had replied. They were probably whispering to each other, since his wasn’t pinging, or it had to do with the time travel.

He managed to get a melody that sounded halfway decent and let it rest. It’d be better with a guitar.

Tommy came sprinting over, hair a mess and eyes wide.

“I- I came as soon as I can.”

Tommy's eyes lifted from where he had been bent over panting.

“W… Wilbur?” Tommy’s eyes filled with tears. He stood there, frozen, with his hands balled and eyes wide.

“I-I thought. But I thought it didn’t work?” Wilbur blinked. What didn’t work?

“It’s past Wilbur. Something happened and he was brought here. Wilbur, how old is Tommy.”

“Er, we should probably get going soon…”

“Yeah…” Tommy replied to Phil’s statement. Wilbur nodded.

They passed by a huge eater, Wilbur staring for a while and stopping.

“Oh..”

“What… What’s this?”

Phil frowned. “The evidence of corruption. Signs that government ideals don’t always stay as the core ideals.” Tommy glared.

Wilbur blinked, noticing the lack of details, but continued on. 

“How’s Tubbo?”

“He’s been doing pretty well. President of Snowchester, though no one really takes him seriously.”

There was red stuff over the path now. Phil made a statement out of avoiding it while Tommy just carefully stepped over them.

“What…”

“The Egg.”

Wilbur could tell that was then end of it.

“Can we tell-”

“No. It’ll change too much.” He caught snippets of Tommy and Phil’s whispered conversations. 

“But not even-”

“We can’t Tommy!” Phil almost yelled that part. “I know how much you want to stop every to thing, but we can’t!”

Phil realized his volume and took a deep breath. He returned to a whisper, this time out of reach for Wilbur’s ears.

He sighed, wondering what Tommy wanted to change.

There was a town, apparently Snowchester, which they walked by too. They came to a dirt hut and waited there.

“Um,” he frowned. “What is this?”

“My home.” Tommy took a bite of a steak.

And what? His house? A literal dirt hut in the wall of some mountain. Wilbur frowned.

“Why aren’t you in... Snowchester? Was that what it was called?”

He just shrugged, and Wilbur knew this wasn’t something they were going to talk about. He sighed, setting his bread down onto a napkin.

Standing up, he frowned and walked over. He poked into a chest, noticing there was actually not a lot of stuff. He bit his lip, worried about Tommy.

Why did he have so little? He’d definitely give Tommy something if he needed it! All he had to do was ask.

But it seemed the universe had other ideas.

An echoey voice, eerily similar to his, rang through the air.

“Hello Phil, Tommy!” Wilbur turned to see…

A pale, floating version of himself. The yellow sweater he wore was faded and torn in the front, singed on the edges, and his eyes were white.

He choked for a moment. A ghost? But why did it look like him?

“Alivebur? Am… Am I going away? But, we didn’t do any of the ritual stuff like last time?”

Alivebur? 

What.

Was.

Happening? Wilbur was so confused right now.

‘Uh, I came here to ask if you could watch Friend while I went to visit Fundy, but… I guess I’m getting replaced…”

Phil’s eyes widened. Tommy made some excuses, though Phil glared at him to stop.

“Ghostbur, he’s from the past. You’re not getting replaced. And of course I can watch Friend. Tommy’s here too, and past Wilbur, so you don’t need to worry about him!”

“Oh, okay! Um, here’s some blue as a thank you!”

The ghost handed him some blue dye, pulling a blue sheep into there before disconnecting the lead and handing it to Tommy.

Then, he ran off, disappearing shortly after. 

Phil and Tommy stared at each other for a few moments. Then, Wilbur let out a shaky question,

“What just… Happened?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wilbur learns the truth, and gets a headache.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I acknowledge that Wilbur hurt Tommy, but at the same time, I need that family fluff.

“What just… Happened?” Wilbur glanced back and forth between Phil and TOmmy, utterly confused. “Who was that? And why did they call me ‘Alivebur?’And them ‘Ghostbur?’”

Phil frowned, eyes glancing towards Tommy. The younger nodded with a sigh, and Phil stood up. He stepped toward the bed, sitting and making space for Wilbur.

Hesitantly, he sat down next to his father.

“That was Ghostbur. He… Came not too long after that town was blown up that we passed.”

“Did he cause that huge crater?”

“Uh, no. It was actually blown up several times, so it was rebuilt after that. That mark is from the most recent set of explosions-”

“You say that like you didn’t help out,” Tommy paused in running his hands through the sheep’s—Friend?—wool, and Phil winced.

“Is… What’s the reason he could me ‘Alivebur?’ Is it a nickname, or…”

“He’s a ghost. Your ghost, to be exact.”

And Wilbur Soot’s world collapsed that day. He’d lost all three of his lives? But why was he so… Different? Was Fundy grown up now too?

“Is… Is the explosions a coincidence or…”

“No. You were the one who blew it up. You died shortly after, and something happened that caused you to become a ghost, and forget most of your memories.”

WIlbur clenched his fist. Why would he blow something up? Let alone a whole town, full of people, full of precious items, full of homes, love, family?

_ Why? _

_ Why did she blow everything up? Why was he dead? _

He glamced at Tommy, expecting to see stifled laughter, because this was some practical joke and they were going to do the punchline soon and-

“Wilbur!” Phil’s voice cut through his panic. “Hey, it’s fine. Shh,” Phil’s voice soother Wilbur as he saw his vision go blurry. He noticed his cheek felt wet—was he crying? Why would he cry?

He glanced at Tommy, expecting sadness, but he was met with stone.

He let out a choked sob, sitting up from where he was in his father’s embrace—when had that happened?—and made a motion for Tommy to come. 

He needed his brother. He needed comfort. He needed-

“No.”

…

_ What? _

“I’m sorry, Wilbur. But I’m- I’m not comfortable with that. I’m not ready.”

What had he done to his brother, that he wouldn’t hug him? How badly had Tommy been hurt?

_ Why. Why had he done this? Why was Tommy hurt? Why did whoever did this think it was fine? _

“It was… Bad, Wilbur. Lots of stuff happened that led to it. Tubbo’s betrayal, your exile after the election, the war against Ma-” Phil cut himself off before finishing it, and Wilbur felt angry.

_ Why. Why didn’t they trust him with a name? A NAME! Were they… _

_ Were they scared of him? Scared enough they couldn’t tell him the name of a place? _

And thought chilled Wilbur to the bone.

Tommy glancing from side to side, his leg bouncing from the chest he sat in, his eye on the door. Phil frowning, holding the blade in his hand, not quite gripped but also not quite relaxed.

He felt his fingernails dig into his palms, ignoring the pain, because he deserved it if he had made them this scared.

Wilbur had screwed up so bad in the future that he’d hurt Tommy, his brother. He’d lost all three of his lives.

He chuckled, waiting for the punchline to be let out. For everyone to emerge from behind the hurt, busting their guts. 

It never came. So he did it himself.

He laughed. It began as a chuckle, but eventually it led to full on laughs as he pointed a finger at Phil.

“N-No, you’re lying! You’re lying to me, this is all a joke, everything’s fine, I’m going to go home and see Tubbo napping on Tommy. And thEn Techno’s going to ask me where I’ve bEEn and-”

“-ilbur! Wilbur Soot, cut it out!”

“Tell me. Tell iT’s all a jOKe, and it’s all going to go back to normal-”

“ **WILBUR SOOT! THIS IS THE** **_TRUTH_ ** !”

Tommy. Tommy’s voice cut through.

_ (Tommy, who he’d hurt. Tommy, who’s scared of him. Tommy, who is keeping a distance from him. Tommy, who-) _

He slapped him, and Wilbur stared. He moved his shaking hand to his cheek, eyes never leaving Tommy’s watering ones.

“You’re acting like- Like you did there, and it’s  _ scaring  _ me Wilbur. You’re  _ scaring _ me, Wilbur. You’re not acting like the brother I knew. You aren’t acting like the person I wanted—needed—when I stayed in Pogtopia!”

“ _ You aren’t the Wilbur I loved _ .”

WIlbur watched as the tears streamed down Tommy’s cheek, eyes angry while his tears told of deep emotion.

Somehow, Tommy didn’t look weak right now. Tommy looked strong, brave, and confident.

Wait…

Did Phil say something about a  _ war _ ?

He stared again, not making a noise as he sat down onto the bed, pulling his legs onto himself and, finally, finally.

He let himself cry without the fear of Tommy, Techno, and Tubbo walking in.

“Wow.” 

Phil rubbed his back, letting him process what he just learned. 

He’d screwed up. Majorly so.

But maybe, maybe he could make it up right now. He saw Tommy glancing at his hands, and he took his axe out of its sheath and threw it on the ground in front of Tommy.

It wasn’t much, an iron one used for firewood, but it was a weapon still.

He could make Tommy feel safer, perhaps, and he’d definitely try.

Anything for his brother. 

( _ A memory he’d started to forget came into his mind. _

_ “Wilby!” Tommy’s shrill voice rang out. “Wilby, Wilby! Play me a song!”  _

_ Wilbur chuckled, but grabbed his guitar and strummed a few notes.  _

**_“You are my sunshine,”_ **

_ Tommy, not too many years ago, had smiled so wide when Wilbur had given him a cow plushie. He’d been eyeing it while at the store, and Tubbo had the bee plushie his father had left in his box. The bee sweater he’d made with the wool of their sheep was adorable on Tubbo, so he’d made one for Tommy that resembled a cow. _

_ He’d loved it. Slept in it. He was wearing it when Wilbur had given him his cow plushie, and WIlbur couldn’t resist taking a few photos of it. _

**_“My only sunshine.”_ **

**_“You make me happy, when skies are grey.”_ **

_ Tommy stared up at Wilbur. The lightning storm raged outside, and WIlbur was frantically placing buckets under and leaks. He hoped their house wasn’t struck. _

_ Roofing was expensive, and the money that Phil had left for them didn’t cover the expenses while leaving them enough. Techno had gotten work, but he still wasn’t making enough where they had the guarantee of three meals everyday and no worry of not being warm in the winter. _

_ “Wilby! Don’ be sad, you need a hug!” Tommy’s body, baby fat still covering him despite not eating as much as he should, had wrapped around him. _

_ He let himself smile and lifted Tommy up onto his waist. He spouted some gibberish about flying and stopping the storm, just to make Wilbur happy. _

_ He didn’t need the sun if he had Tommy. _

**_“You’ll never know, dear, how, much I love you.”_ **

_ “I love you ten!’ _

_ Wilbur smiled as Tommy held up four fat stubs of fingers. _

_ “Toms, that’s four fingers. Here-” he pushed up the rest of Tommy’s fingers- “That’s ten. And I love you even more!” _

_ “But ten’s the biggest!’ _

_ “Hmm, I don’t know. I think I love you… eleven!” _

_ “Elwven?” _

_ “Yeah. It’s one plus ten, so here.” He held up one fingers next to Tommy’s ten and counted them with Tommy. _

_ “One, two, three. Four, five, six. Seven, eight, nine, Ten… Eleven!” _

_ Tommy cheered, running off to show either Techno or Tubbo eleven. _

**_“Please don’t take…_ **

**_My sunshine…_ **

**_Away…”)_ **

“You are my sunshine…”

Tommy froze from picking the axe.

“My only sunshine.” He stood up, letting his puffy eyes meet Wilbur’s.

“You’ll never know, dear… How much I love you…”

He shut his eyes, a smile creeping onto his face at the nostalgia.

“Please don’t take… My sunshine…”

“Away.” Tommy finished with him.

He dropped the axe, rushing over and grabbing him roughly, nearly knocking him over.

Tommy sobbed as he grasped at Wilbur’s hair, clothes, skin, and really anything else he could grab.

Wilbur let out a sad smile and grabbed his brother, who;d grown so much in such little time, and not just about his height.

He was so mature, compared to him. He realized, then, how much he loved Tommy.

How nothing would stop that love.

_ (Except, apparently, his exile, the war, an election. And Tubbo. Tubbo would betray him. He’d never expect it from the boy with curly hair, who stopped by the library with him in search of a book about bees. _

_ That Tubbo, so small, had done nothing to betray him. Done nothing to hurt him. Tubbo didn’t deserve the feelings he found regarding that information. He was still his little brother.) _

  
  


“I’m sorry, Tommy. Whatever I did, I’m sorry about it. It hurt you. Terribly so, and I suck at being a brother.”

“No, it’s okay Wilbur. I mean, what you did- will do?- isn’t, but you haven;t done any of that. You haven’t… You aren’t that Wilbur yet.”

“Tommy.” Phil said softly.

“I know. I know, Phil. I want to stop it all. I want it to all go to bloody normal, when we were able to relax with each other. When our biggest worries were what would be for dinner tomorrow.”

He sighed, and there was a knock on the door.

There, stood the one he’d seen so many times.

“Oh. Er, hey Karl. How’s Sapnap?”

“Could be better, could be worse. Enough small talk though, I found out how to fix this.”

“Fix…?”

“Send Wilbur back to his proper time. It’s messed up a lot already. Timelines diverging.”

“Karl, what?”

Karl ignored Phil’s question, coming to grab Wilbur's wrist as he pulled his goggles down. 

“It’ll hurt for a little, then you’ll feel rested. Don’t let go of me, no matter what. Alright?”

“Al...right, I suppose?”

He pressed a button on a pocket watch, and the world was a purple and green spiral.

He was glad that Karl was holding onto his arm, or else he probably wouldn’t be able to keep hold of him. 

Wait, who was Karl? What was going on?

He sat up in the alleyway, head pounding.

“Ow… What happened?”

“You passed out, I think. I saw you laying in the alleyway, and came to check on you. Need to call anyone?” The brunette said. Wilbur shook his head. His mind grabbed for something, anything, about why they felt so… Familiar.

“No—well, yes, but I’ll be fine. Thanks…”

“Karl. You can call me Karl, he/him.”

“Thanks. I’m Wilbur. Wilbur Soot.”

Karl stood up, and he walked out of the alleyway.

He thought he heard a whispered  _ “I know.”  _ But he couldn’t be sure. 

When he went out of the alleyway, the man with the bright hoodie and googles could not be seen anywhere.

He sighed, putting his hands in his pocket and walking back home.

Techno would be worried if he stayed out too long.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awww cute. And In case you were wondering, going back wiped Wilbur’s conscious memory, so his gut tells him _Hey, somethings wrong, you’v met them before_ but he doesn’t understand it and ignores it.

**Author's Note:**

> Ghostbur is adorable and doesn’t realize the mess he just made. Meanwhile Fundy and Ghostbur are gonna go on one last father-son fishing trip unless Phil doesn’t sign the adoption papers. 
> 
> The only reason Techno hasn’t drop kicked Fundy is because he’s basically his nephew


End file.
